Research
Scientific Publications
The following are all peer-reviewed, scientific publications in respected academic journals. My work has spanned topics including: Disorders of Consciousness (e.g., coma), an emerging form of brain stimulation called Low Intensity Focused Ultrasound (LIFU), Cognitive Functioning, the Thalamocortical System, Computational Methods, Meditation, and more. Filter by topic or click any node to explore a study in more detail.
RESEARCH FOCUS
My primary interest remains the nature of consciousness and ways that we might manipulate consciousness for the betterment of the human condition. I gained extremely early-access (2017-on) to an emerging form of neuromodulation (i.e., brain stimulation) called Low Intensity Focused Ultrasound (LIFU), which remains the only way to precisely target (mm-scale precision) any brain-region without-surgery, including in healthy human volunteers. As a result, much of my work thus-far has concerned using this new tool as a way to safely modulate human brain-function and the conscious experience it appears to generate–from jump-starting the recovery of consciousness in coma patients to amplifying the effects of Vipassana meditation in expert meditators.
TOTAL CITATIONS OVER TIME
MY FIRST-AUTHOR PUBLICATIONS
Projects that I Led: I ran the design, execution, data collection, data analysis, and writing of these studies.
- 1st-Author…

2025 · PsyArXiv (preprint, under review)
Facilitating Meditation with Focused Ultrasound Neuromodulation: A First Investigation in Experienced Practitioners
MeditationFocused UltrasoundConsciousnessClick for More - 1st-Author…

2025 · bioRxiv (preprint, under review)
Behavioral Effects of Targeting the Central Thalamus and Pulvinar with Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation in Healthy Volunteers
ThalamusAttentionFocused UltrasoundClick for More - 1st-Author…

2025 · medRxiv (preprint, under review)
Neural Correlates of Behavioral Recovery Following Ultrasonic Thalamic Stimulation in Chronic Disorders of Consciousness
Disorders of ConsciousnessClinical TrialFocused UltrasoundClick for More - 1st-Author…

2022 · PLOS ONE
S.M.A.R.T. F.U.S: Surrogate Model of Attenuation and Refraction in Transcranial Focused Ultrasound
MethodsModelingFocused UltrasoundClick for More - 1st-Author…

2022 · Brain Sciences
Ultrasonic Deep Brain Neuromodulation in Acute Disorders of Consciousness: A Proof-of-Concept
Disorders of ConsciousnessClinical TrialFocused UltrasoundClick for More - 1st-Author…

2021 · Scientific Reports
Real Time and Delayed Effects of Subcortical Low Intensity Focused Ultrasound
Focused UltrasoundHuman NeuroscienceMethodsClick for More - 1st-Author…

2021 · Brain Stimulation
Ultrasonic Thalamic Stimulation in Chronic Disorders of Consciousness
Disorders of ConsciousnessClinical TrialFocused UltrasoundClick for More - 1st-Author…

2021 · Neurocritical Care
Mechanisms Underlying Disorders of Consciousness: Bridging Gaps to Move Toward an Integrated Translational Science
Disorders of ConsciousnessReviewConsciousness TheoryClick for More
Co-Author Publications
Projects that I Meaningfully Contributed to: I contributed data, data collection, writing/editing, and/or conducted data analysis as part of a collaborative team.
- Co-Author…

2026 · medRxiv (preprint)
Thalamic Sonication in Chronic Disorders of Consciousness: A Mechanistic Single-Arm Clinical Trial
Disorders of ConsciousnessFocused UltrasoundThalamusClick for More - Co-Author…

2024 · Biol. Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging
ENIGMA-Meditation: Worldwide Consortium for Neuroscientific Investigations of Meditation Practices
MeditationConsortiumNeuroimagingClick for More - Co-Author…

2020 · Brain Structure and Function
A Systematic Comparison of Structural-, Structural Connectivity-, and Functional Connectivity-Based Thalamus Parcellation Techniques
ThalamusNeuroimaging MethodsMethodsClick for More - Co-Author…

2016 · Current Biology
Working Memory Systems in the Rat
Working MemoryAnimal ModelsClick for More